Robert W. Lawson ’75 died on December 15, 2025, in Concord, Massachusetts.
(The following was provided by the Concord Bridge on January 2, 2026:)
Robert Widing Lawson ’75
Robert Widing Lawson passed away December 15, 2025, at his home in Concord after a brave battle with glioblastoma and Parkinson’s. Born January 21, 1953, in Nyack, New York, Bob was the son of Arthur and Helen (Widing) and the brother of Richard, Peter, and Karen.
Bob embraced a fun-loving and adventurous spirit from an early age with a group of friends who called themselves the TSG — Tom Sawyer Gang. The teenagers hitchhiked widely, canoed the Mississippi and Connecticut Rivers, and even hopped a freight train.
Bob attended Deerfield Academy and then Bowdoin College, where he met his life partner, Janet Keydel. Friends called them “the Bobbsey Twins,” and they were inseparable thereafter.
Inspired by The Beatles, Bob’s love of music was an essential thread throughout his life. After college, Bob and Janet built Blue Jay Studio, a world-class recording studio, under a hill in Carlisle. Bob managed the studio from 1979 to 2001. It became a hub for the vibrant local music community, attracting greats like Yo-Yo Ma, Billy Joel, and Aerosmith, and which produced gold, platinum, and Grammy-winning records. After Blue Jay, Bob put his creativity to work in video production.
Bob was a family man above all and a devoted and involved father to his three children, Barrett, Julia, and Sawyer. He shared with them his passion for music, forming the Lawson Family Band and performing at school, church, and town events, with a repertoire ranging from classical to rock ’n’ roll.
Active in Concord and easily recognizable by his Henry David Thoreau beard, Bob volunteered with TriCon Church, Mass Audubon, and the Concord Climate Action Network. He co-authored “Birding by Ear,” a Peterson Field Guide, and created “The Kids Collection of Greatest Classics,” a three-volume set of classical melodies for children.
Bob had a sense of humor and life force that drew people to him. He maintained strong relationships from all phases of his life and was grateful for reaching his 50th anniversary with Janet; for his three grandchildren Grace, Logan, and James; and for new family members Maddy Tillotson and Santi Dueñas. In his last year, his devoted friends and family showed up for him, a testament to a life well lived.